Amritpal Crackdown Case: Punjab Government Releases 348 Of The 360 Detainees

The Punjab government has made an attempt to reach out to the Akal Takht and have reportedly released 348 out of the 360 detainees.

This development comes a after Bhagwant Mann, the Punjab Chief Minister, accused Akal Takht Jathedar Giani Harpreet Singh of being influenced by the 'Badals- controlled' Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC) regarding the arrest of Khalistani supporter Amritpal Singh.

In a gathering on Monday (27 March), Giani Harpreet Singh gave an ultimatum to the Punjab government for the release of 'Sikh youth' apprehended in a crackdown against 'Waris Punjab De' leader Amritpal.

Jaspal Singh, the personal assistant of the Akal Takht Jathedar, stated that they were informed of the detainees' release by a government representative over a call who also assured them that the remaining 12 would be released soon as they were taken into preventive custody under Section 107/151 of the CrPC.

The phone conversation happened prior to the withholding of a tweet posted by Harpreet Singh, which featured a poster inviting various Sikh sects, groups, intellectuals, and writers to gather at Akal Takht to discuss the "present state of affairs in Punjab" on Baisakhi.

The CM Mann had tweeted on 28 March that “History shows that the Badals have abused the position of Jathedars for their personal benefit.

The Jathedar should have issued the ultimatum for acting on cases relating to sacrilege or disappearance of ‘swaroops’ of Guru Granth Sahib.”

To which, the Jathedar responded asking the CM to save Punjab and reunite 'innocent youth' with their mothers.